# Russell family shooting

**Russell family shooting** refers to a familicide in which, when the shooting ended, Russell turned a weapon on himself, shooting himself in his left lung. It has been compared with the killing carried out by Bruce Jeffrey Pardo, 45, who on [Christmas Eve](https://www.edgepedia.org/christmas-eve) 2008, dressed in a [Santa Claus](https://www.edgepedia.org/santa-claus) outfit, opened fire on a gathering of his in-laws in Covina, California, and set their house ablaze, killing at least eight people and injuring several others, before killing himself with a single shot to the head at his brother's home in the Sylmar section of Los Angeles.<sup>[1](https://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/26/us/26Santa.html)</sup> The two cases differ in outcome for the perpetrator: Russell's attempt to shoot himself in the left lung left him injured but alive, while Pardo died by a single shot to the head.<sup>[1](https://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/26/us/26Santa.html)</sup> No coherent motive is documented, and the closest the record comes to a reason for the killings is a mortgage reference that was reported as incoherent.

## The shooting

When the shooting ended, Russell turned a weapon on himself, shooting himself in his left lung.

## Motive and mental state

No coherent motive is documented. The mortgage reference is the closest the record comes to a reason for the killings, but the statement was reported as incoherent, so it does not establish a financial dispute as a cause.

## How it compares with other familicides

On Christmas Eve 2008, Bruce Jeffrey Pardo, 45, dressed in a Santa Claus outfit, opened fire on a gathering of his in-laws in Covina, California, and set their house ablaze, killing at least eight people and injuring several others; he then killed himself with a single shot to the head at his brother's home in the Sylmar section of Los Angeles.<sup>[1](https://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/26/us/26Santa.html)</sup>

The two cases differ in outcome for the perpetrator. Russell's attempt to shoot himself in the left lung left him injured but alive; Pardo died by a single shot to the head.<sup>[1](https://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/26/us/26Santa.html)</sup>

## References

1. [Man in a Santa Suit Kills at Least 8 at a Party](https://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/26/us/26Santa.html), The New York Times, December 26, 2008.

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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › Law and justice › Criminal law and penal justice › Offenses › Crimes against the person › Spree and mass killings*

*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Edited: Oct 11, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026*

*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*

License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license